The dying innocence of scooby and the Gang
Scooby-Doo,
Where Are You!, my favorite cartoon. I remember
being six years old and everyday right after school, like clockwork, I would be
sitting in front of the television watching Scooby-Doo,
Where Are You!. I would be singing
along to the theme song, wondering what Scooby and the Gang were going to be
meddling in that day. I was always
amazed how a hungry dog, his best friend, and their gang figured out all of the
mysteries. As a child, I learned many
lessons from watching Scooby-Doo, Where
Are You!. I learned that some adults
are liars and are only looking for personal gain. Another important lesson that watching Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! taught me was
that persistence is the key to finding out the truth. Those are just two of the lessons that made it
such a great show. However, I am concerned that today, the moral well
being of Scooby and the Gang has changed.
Recently, I was flipping through the channels on my television and
Scooby’s face appeared on the screen. I was overcome with nostalgia and
had to watch the rest of the episode. I was horrified to see that my
favorite childhood series, that I had always known to be about catching bad
guys and solving mysteries, was transformed to a romantic love story between
Daphne and Fred. So, like the proper Scooby-Doo fan, I investigated. The
emotionally explicit relationship between Fred and Daphne depicted in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated hurts
the theme of innocence in Scooby-Doo,
Where Are You!.
A boy, his dog, and their three best friends solving mysteries: that has always been the innocence of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Daphne never expressed her love for Fred or had urges to impress him. She was the klutz that got the gang side-tracked and captured; that was her forte, not much else. Scooby and Shaggy were always the scared characters in the show. When they caught a hint of fear they would run to safety as fast as they possibly could. Even though they would always run away from their fears, it was okay because they were eventually able to face their fears. Fred was the emotional rock of the gang. He was always concerned with searching for the truth, never worrying about his possible feelings for Daphne. Velma was the brains of the group, always looking for the next clue. She would piece together all of the clues to solve the mysteries, with the help of Fred. It was just five meddling kids that traveled from town to town, searching for the truth and not worrying about anything else. The simple and efficient storytelling of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! is what made it work.
The Leader of the Gang has always been Fred. He is the only one out of the gang who chooses to use his driver’s license. This has not changed from the original series. If he wants to check out an old abandoned mine or a creepy graveyard and the others don't, well tough shit because you're about to solve a mystery. Scooby and Shaggy sometimes regretted Fred’s decisions, but the truth is, you must meddle and be persistent to find the truth. Velma was the odd one in the gang. She was the strong, independent woman that always took charge leading Scooby and Shaggy into creepy and uncharted territories. She took drastic measures to search for clues. God forbid if she lost her glasses, she would instantly become useless. I admired her more than the others because she was the odd ball of the group. It was her, Scooby, and Shaggy that were the glue keeping the gang together. Daphne, on the other hand, would always tag along with Fred for the adventure, or maybe even the bedroom. There is no denying that the older audiences of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! may have thought that Daphne and Fred were seeing each other. “Scooby, Shaggy and Velma you guys check the basement for clues, Daphne and I will search the bedrooms.” This statement from Fred was a sub-textual joke only older audiences would understand. Younger audiences would hear this and it would go right over their heads. They would not understand the sub-textual “wink” that was intended for the older viewers. In retrospect, this was a common way Fred would break up the gang in search of clues. This is the extent of sub-textual evidence I could find of Fred and Daphne’s physical and emotional relationship in the 1970’s through 90’s Scooby Doo, Where Are You! Fred and Daphne’s relationship has no sub-textual evidence, today, but it has become an underlying theme in today's spin on the classic series, Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated.
The clip above shows snapshots of Daphne and Fred’s relationship throughout the series, Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated. It is obvious that Daphne and Fred have taken on an emotionally explicit role in the series. In the second scene of the video, Daphne finds a clue that happens to be a locket which opens up to show a picture of what seems to be a vintage photo of Fred and Daphne. Fred enthusiastically praises Daphne for finding the clue. Daphne bats her eyelashes and flirtatiously replies with “Thanks Fred, you're so sweet.” From that scene on, I worried about the emotional well being of today’s Scooby-Doo fan base. It was not the danger-prone Daphne I knew and loved. She was now an emotionally unstable girl that was focused on chasing the man of her dreams. Daphne looked heartbroken when Fred did not realize the attempt she made for an intimate conversation. I was thanking God that Fred already turned his attention toward finding the next clue to solving the mystery. Later in the video, Daphne is shown wearing a revealing bikini. In hopes of trying to impress Fred, Daphne tells Velma to rub oil on her so she can be shiny because Fred loves shiny things. This scene disgusted me. In another scene, Fred was brought to his knees by his feelings, exclaiming, “I have feelings for both Daphne and traps!” That was the final straw, for me. Children should not be watching Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated.
Children internalize cartoons. Daphne’s obsessive urges to flirt and impress Fred relay a dangerous subliminal message. It is okay to be emotionally attached to someone of the opposite sex. This is a valid message, but it is only valid at the right age. If this message is given at too young of an age, children may focus on it too much forgetting about solving the fundamental truths of life. Children today are growing up too fast. The content in the material they watch everyday after school is to blame. Innocence is the lack of knowledge of how cruel and unusual the real world is. Examples of innocence would be magical beings such as Santa and The Easter Bunny and that there is no evil in the world. Heartbreak is a very real evil, and through the pursuit of relationships at a young age we can see how cruel the world really is. Losing your innocence at a younger age, because of your favorite cartoons, is a crime against humanity. The messages in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated are depriving children of their innocence.
looked around the internet and I could not find anything to describe the feelings I have about the loss of innocence in children of America. Am I just old fashioned, or are there subliminal messages in cartoons, that we do not realize that causing children to grow up too fast? I found an answer on the other side of the internet’s Atlantic Ocean, in England. One article on dailymail.co.uk states:
“A group of 200 teachers, academics, authors, charity leaders and other experts have written a letter calling for a drive to ‘interrupt the erosion of childhood’. The group includes novelist Philip Pullman, Oxford University neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield, and Lord Layard, emeritus professor of economics at the London School of Economics. They write: ‘Our children are subjected to increasing commercial pressures, they begin formal education earlier than the European norm, and they spend ever more time indoors with screen-based technology, rather than in outdoor activity.”
They go on to list four points to “restore proper values to childhood” but, I believe it is simpler than that.
Society should change the subliminal moral messages in the cartoons children watch today. Children don't have to grow up so fast. The future is here. We are a technological society, but the innocence and morals depicted in Scooby Doo, Where Are You! can still be in our hearts just like they were in the good old days. Children can watch whatever they would like to, but morals need to be present. It does not need to be as extreme as Veggie Tales which feels like it is shoving a moral message down your throat, but I think parents should be more cautious and engaged in what their children are watching today. #BringTheInnocenceBack.
youtube clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIE3fG0Fsmk
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041347/Modern-life-making-children-grow-fast.html#ixzz3LPUpiHdG
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041347/Modern-life-making-children-grow-fast.html
A boy, his dog, and their three best friends solving mysteries: that has always been the innocence of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Daphne never expressed her love for Fred or had urges to impress him. She was the klutz that got the gang side-tracked and captured; that was her forte, not much else. Scooby and Shaggy were always the scared characters in the show. When they caught a hint of fear they would run to safety as fast as they possibly could. Even though they would always run away from their fears, it was okay because they were eventually able to face their fears. Fred was the emotional rock of the gang. He was always concerned with searching for the truth, never worrying about his possible feelings for Daphne. Velma was the brains of the group, always looking for the next clue. She would piece together all of the clues to solve the mysteries, with the help of Fred. It was just five meddling kids that traveled from town to town, searching for the truth and not worrying about anything else. The simple and efficient storytelling of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! is what made it work.
The Leader of the Gang has always been Fred. He is the only one out of the gang who chooses to use his driver’s license. This has not changed from the original series. If he wants to check out an old abandoned mine or a creepy graveyard and the others don't, well tough shit because you're about to solve a mystery. Scooby and Shaggy sometimes regretted Fred’s decisions, but the truth is, you must meddle and be persistent to find the truth. Velma was the odd one in the gang. She was the strong, independent woman that always took charge leading Scooby and Shaggy into creepy and uncharted territories. She took drastic measures to search for clues. God forbid if she lost her glasses, she would instantly become useless. I admired her more than the others because she was the odd ball of the group. It was her, Scooby, and Shaggy that were the glue keeping the gang together. Daphne, on the other hand, would always tag along with Fred for the adventure, or maybe even the bedroom. There is no denying that the older audiences of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! may have thought that Daphne and Fred were seeing each other. “Scooby, Shaggy and Velma you guys check the basement for clues, Daphne and I will search the bedrooms.” This statement from Fred was a sub-textual joke only older audiences would understand. Younger audiences would hear this and it would go right over their heads. They would not understand the sub-textual “wink” that was intended for the older viewers. In retrospect, this was a common way Fred would break up the gang in search of clues. This is the extent of sub-textual evidence I could find of Fred and Daphne’s physical and emotional relationship in the 1970’s through 90’s Scooby Doo, Where Are You! Fred and Daphne’s relationship has no sub-textual evidence, today, but it has become an underlying theme in today's spin on the classic series, Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated.
The clip above shows snapshots of Daphne and Fred’s relationship throughout the series, Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated. It is obvious that Daphne and Fred have taken on an emotionally explicit role in the series. In the second scene of the video, Daphne finds a clue that happens to be a locket which opens up to show a picture of what seems to be a vintage photo of Fred and Daphne. Fred enthusiastically praises Daphne for finding the clue. Daphne bats her eyelashes and flirtatiously replies with “Thanks Fred, you're so sweet.” From that scene on, I worried about the emotional well being of today’s Scooby-Doo fan base. It was not the danger-prone Daphne I knew and loved. She was now an emotionally unstable girl that was focused on chasing the man of her dreams. Daphne looked heartbroken when Fred did not realize the attempt she made for an intimate conversation. I was thanking God that Fred already turned his attention toward finding the next clue to solving the mystery. Later in the video, Daphne is shown wearing a revealing bikini. In hopes of trying to impress Fred, Daphne tells Velma to rub oil on her so she can be shiny because Fred loves shiny things. This scene disgusted me. In another scene, Fred was brought to his knees by his feelings, exclaiming, “I have feelings for both Daphne and traps!” That was the final straw, for me. Children should not be watching Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated.
Children internalize cartoons. Daphne’s obsessive urges to flirt and impress Fred relay a dangerous subliminal message. It is okay to be emotionally attached to someone of the opposite sex. This is a valid message, but it is only valid at the right age. If this message is given at too young of an age, children may focus on it too much forgetting about solving the fundamental truths of life. Children today are growing up too fast. The content in the material they watch everyday after school is to blame. Innocence is the lack of knowledge of how cruel and unusual the real world is. Examples of innocence would be magical beings such as Santa and The Easter Bunny and that there is no evil in the world. Heartbreak is a very real evil, and through the pursuit of relationships at a young age we can see how cruel the world really is. Losing your innocence at a younger age, because of your favorite cartoons, is a crime against humanity. The messages in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated are depriving children of their innocence.
looked around the internet and I could not find anything to describe the feelings I have about the loss of innocence in children of America. Am I just old fashioned, or are there subliminal messages in cartoons, that we do not realize that causing children to grow up too fast? I found an answer on the other side of the internet’s Atlantic Ocean, in England. One article on dailymail.co.uk states:
“A group of 200 teachers, academics, authors, charity leaders and other experts have written a letter calling for a drive to ‘interrupt the erosion of childhood’. The group includes novelist Philip Pullman, Oxford University neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield, and Lord Layard, emeritus professor of economics at the London School of Economics. They write: ‘Our children are subjected to increasing commercial pressures, they begin formal education earlier than the European norm, and they spend ever more time indoors with screen-based technology, rather than in outdoor activity.”
They go on to list four points to “restore proper values to childhood” but, I believe it is simpler than that.
Society should change the subliminal moral messages in the cartoons children watch today. Children don't have to grow up so fast. The future is here. We are a technological society, but the innocence and morals depicted in Scooby Doo, Where Are You! can still be in our hearts just like they were in the good old days. Children can watch whatever they would like to, but morals need to be present. It does not need to be as extreme as Veggie Tales which feels like it is shoving a moral message down your throat, but I think parents should be more cautious and engaged in what their children are watching today. #BringTheInnocenceBack.
youtube clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIE3fG0Fsmk
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041347/Modern-life-making-children-grow-fast.html#ixzz3LPUpiHdG
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041347/Modern-life-making-children-grow-fast.html